Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s Chelsea Peretti reflected on an emotional moment she had following costar Andre Braugher’s death.
“I just did press in Santa Barbara for the film festival,” Peretti, 45, explained on an episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers on Wednesday, February 14. “My movie was there, and on the red carpet, the guy goes, ‘What’s your favorite Brooklyn Nine-Nine episode?’ And I’m talking about it. He’s like, ‘Who was funniest?’ I’m like, ‘Andre,’ and I just burst into tears.”
Peretti – who played Gina Linetti alongside Braugher’s Captain Raymond Holt on Brooklyn Nine-Nine – noted that it was “so horrible” being a celebrity in that moment and that they expected her to act like a “complete robot.”
“[The interviewer] is just holding his phone and I’m just like, ‘This is a nightmare,’” she shared. “And my publicist is like, ‘Um, uh ….’ And then he goes, ‘Well, one last question: what are you binging?’ while I’m crying. I’m like [sobbing], ‘Beef!’”
Peretti also remembered another moment where she was caught off guard when people were asking questions about Braugher’s death.
“I went to London over Christmas and people were coming up to me and they’re like, ‘Andre died.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah.’ They’re like, ‘How do you feel?’ I’m like, ‘Bad?’” she said at the time.
Braugher’s rep, Jennifer Allen, confirmed that the actor died in December after a private battle with lung cancer at age 61.
Several of Braugher’s B99 costars paid tribute to the late actor following his death, including Peretti.
“Love you ❤️Will miss your dulcet tones. Forever lucky to have gone on such a journey with you. Ringside seat,” Peretti wrote via Instagram at the time. “You were so funny to me and the epitome of still waters run deep. I will always cherish our conversations, often with me hanging in your doorway barring your exit, and the insane opportunity to be your sidekick. Is it weird that I am also grieving for what Captain Holt meant to Gina? I really hoped and knew I would see you again. Hate that I won’t 💔.”
After earning his B.A. from Stanford and an M.F.A. from Julliard, Braugher got his breakout role in the NBC drama Homicide: Life on the Street, which ran from 1992 to 1998. For his portrayal of Frank Pembleton, Braugher earned two Emmys for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 1997 and 1998.
Braugher continued to star in multiple series including 2008’s Thief and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which ran from 2013 to 2021. During his time on the NBC show, Braugher was nominated for four Emmys and won two Critics Choice Awards for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.
